Which cells respond to gravitropic stimulus in the lentil root?

When roots of lentil ( Lens culinaris L., cv. Large blonde) were placed in horizontal position for 2 h, their upper side elongated faster than their lower side, and also faster than vertical controls. The length of the cortical cells was greater in the upper half than in the lower half of roots which had been horizontally stimulated for 2 h. The zone of curvature extended from the distal part of the meristem to the proximal part of the cell elongation zone. The curvature in the meristem was due to early differentiation of the cells of its upper part. In the proximal part of the cell elongation zone, bending took place due to inhibition of cell growth in the lower half of the root. The results obtained are in agreement with the hypothesis of lateral transport of an inhibitor in gravistimulated roots. This inhibitor should be present in greater amounts in the lower side of the stimulated root and in lower amounts in its upper side than in the vertical controls.     

Membrane-Associated Polysaccharides Composition, Nutritional Requirements and Cell Differentiation in Herpetomonas roitmani: Influence of the Endosymbiont

Herpetomonas roitmani , a trypanosomatid containing a bacterial endosymbiont, was cured by high doses of chloramphenicol. Wild-type and cured flagellates were compared as to polysaccharide composition, nutritional requirements and cellular differentiation. Fucose (18.0%), xylose (15.7%), mannose (38.9%), galactose (10.8%), glucose (16.4%) and inositol (< 1.0%) were identified as polysaccharide components of cured H. roitmani as assessed by gas-liquid chromatography. However, the wild-type strain displayed a markedly different sugar profile, in that xylose was absent and inositol preferentially synthesized, whereas the other monosaccharide components remained unchanged. Variations in nutritional pattern also occurred between both strains. The bacterial endosymbiont seems to provide the flagellates with nutritional factors, including usual amino acids, vitamins, purine (as adenine) and hemin. The process of cell differentiation was also significantly influenced by the endosymbiont. Opisthomastigote forms predominate (72.0%) in cured as compared with wild-type H. roitmani (37.0%).     

二甲双胍调控糖尿病大鼠骨髓间充质干细胞的增殖和分化

虽然二甲双胍广泛用于治疗2型糖尿病,但是其对骨骼的潜在影响知之甚少。因此,本研究评估了二甲双胍对培养的大鼠骨髓间充质干细胞(MSCs)和脂肪细胞两者的分化以及增殖的影响。首先随机组形成对照实验,其中对照组为在不经二甲双胍处理培养基中培养MSCs细胞21 d,而二甲双胍组则在用100μmol/L二甲双胍处理培养基中培养MSCs 21 d。结果表明,二甲双胍增强了大鼠MSCs的成骨细胞分化细胞中ALP的活性,抑制了培养中MSCs脂肪形成分化的过程,但是增强了MSCs细胞的增殖能力。     

Terminal differentiation in the avian uropygial gland. Accumulation of fatty acid synthase and malic enzyme in non-dividing cells

Summary The secretory tissue of the uropygial gland is of the holocrine type, containing both dividing progenitor cells and lipid-filled differentiated cells. In this study, we examined the relationship between cell division and differentiation. The location of dividing cells was determined by autoradiography of tissue sections from ducklings injected intra-abdominally with ³H-thymidine. Only cells on the basal lamina of the tubules contained labeled nuclei. Dividing cells were distributed uniformly over the length of the tubules. Over the next five days, most of the labeled cells migrated to the lumen of the tubules and disappeared. Cells containing the lipogenic enzymes, fatty acid synthase and malic enzyme, were localized either immunocytochemically using affinity-purified antibodies or cytochemically using a specific assay for malic enzyme activity. Fatty acid synthase and malic enzyme were undetectable in dividing basal cells but present at high levels in differentiating and differentiated cells. Thus, basal cells lying along the basal lamina of the tubules were replacing lipid-laden cells that were continually sloughed into the lumens of the tubules. The signals for differentiation and enzyme accumulation appear to be linked to one another and to cessation of cell division.     

Functional and structural interactions between osteoblastic and preosteoclastic cells in vitro

Osteoblasts are involved in the bone resorption process by regulating osteoclast maturation and activity. In order to elucidate the mechanisms underlying osteoblast/preosteoclast cell interactions, we developed an in vitro model of co-cultured human clonal cell lines of osteoclast precursors (FLG 29.1) and osteoblastic cells (Saos-2), and evaluated the migratory, adhesive, cytochemical, morphological, and biochemical properties of the co-cultured cells. In Boyden chemotactic chambers, FLG 29.1 cells exhibited a marked migratory response toward the Saos-2 cells. Moreover, they preferentially adhered to the osteoblastic monolayer. Direct co-culture of the two cell types induced: (1) positive staining for tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase in FLG 29.1 cells; (2) a decrease of the alkaline phosphatase activity expressed by Saos-2 cells; (3) the appearance of typical ultrastructural features of mature osteoclasts in FLG 29.1 cells; (4) the release into the culture medium of granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor. The addition of parathyroid hormone to the co-culture further potentiated the differentiation of the preosteoclasts, the cells tending to fuse into large multinucleated elements. These in vitro interactions between osteoblasts and osteoclast precursors offer a new model for studying the mechanisms that control osteoclastogenesis in bone tissue.     

Cytometric investigations on hemocytes of the American oyster, Crassostrea virginica

Pericardial hemolymph was obtained from American Oysters (Crassostrea virginica) and the hemocytes characterized by flow cytometry. The cells were found to have a broad unimodal size distribution with a median diameter of 7 micrometers. Total protein measured by flow cytometric fluorescence of dansylated cells also revealed a broad unimodal distribution similar to that obtained for size. The proportion of hemocytes in each stage of the cell cycle was measured using DNA-specific DAPI fluorescence. Histograms showed a single peak representing the G(0)/G(1) population. There was no evidence of S or G(2)+M phases of the cell cycle, nor was polyploidy seen. The forward and orthogonal light scatter of fixed hemocytes showed no evidence of sub-populations on the basis of cytoplasmic granularity. Thus, in terms of these parameters, oyster hemocytes appear to represent a single population exhibiting graded cellular differences.     

Tyrosine and the synthesis of melanin in embryonic cells fromAmbystoma mexicanum

Summary Explants comprising about 15 cells were dissected from various regions of the blastula ofAmbystoma mexicanum and cultured in Barth's medium. By addition of L-tyrosine to the culture medium it was possible to induce melanin synthesis in three different cells types: undifferentiated embryonic cells, mesenchyme cells and nerve cells. Tyrosine was found to act as an inductor in a very low concentration (1 M). It is suggested that tyrosine serves both as an inductor and as a substrate for melanin synthesis in the amphibian larva.     

维甲酸对人神经母细胞瘤SK—N—SH细胞形态结构和分化标志物表达的影响

目的：观察维甲酸对人神经母细胞瘤SK-N-SH细胞形态与超微结构及其相关标志物表达的影响,以鉴定其对神经母细胞瘤细胞终末分化的诱导作用。方法：1μmol／L维甲酸处理SK—N—SH细胞,光镜、电镜和免疫细胞化学检测研究SK—N—SH细胞处理前后细胞形态、超微结构变化和神经元相关标志物的表达变化。结果：光镜与电镜观察结果显示,SK—N—SH细胞经1μmol／LRA处理后,细胞形态和超微结构产生了细胞呈极性状、伸出多个轴突树突状突起、细胞逐渐变小变圆并融合在一起形成类似神经节样结构、细胞表面微绒毛减少、核仁变少变小、常染色质增多、细胞器丰富发达等显著变化;免疫细胞化学检测显示经RA处理后SK-N-SH细胞NSE、MAP2、Synaptophysin的表达较对照组细胞明显加强。结论：维甲酸能改变SK—N—SH细胞形态和超微结构恶性表型特征,并促进与神经细胞相关的终末分化指标的表达,从而对人神经母细胞瘤细胞的终末分化具有显著的诱导作用。     

Identification of acetylcholine and impact of cholinomimetic drugs on cell differentiation and growth in the unicellular green alga Micrasterias denticulata

Acetylcholine (ACh), one of the best-studied neurotransmitters, has been reported in animals as well as in multicellular plants. In higher plants, ACh affects phytochrome-dependent growth and differentiation. In the present study on the green alga Micrasterias denticulata which has been used as a cell biological model system since several decades, we identified ACh for the first time in a unicellular alga, demonstrated light as a regulatory factor of ACh production and showed that cholinergic agonists and antagonists suppress growth and differentiation. ACh was detected in Micrasterias cells grown under light–dark conditions of 14/10 h, but not in dark-grown algae, by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. To quantify cholinergic effects on cell differentiation, we exposed young developmental stages of Micrasterias to cholinergic antagonists (d-tubocurarine, hexamethonium) as well as agonists (carbachol, nicotine). We found that the cholinergic antagonists and, surprisingly, the agonist nicotine significantly suppressed cell growth and differentiation in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, we demonstrated that secondary wall formation is specifically inhibited in the presence of nicotine.     

Mitochondrial membrane potential (DeltaPsi) and Ca<Superscript>2+</Superscript>-induced differentiation in HaCaT keratinocytes

We have used the human calcium- and temperature-dependent (HaCaT) keratinocyte cell line to elucidate mechanisms of switching from a proliferating to a differentiating state. When grown in low calcium medium (<0.1 mM) HaCaT cells proliferate. However, an increase in the calcium concentration of the culture medium, [Ca²⁺]₀, induces growth arrest and the cells start to differentiate. Numerous studies have already shown that the increase in [Ca²⁺]₀ results in acute and sustained increases in intracellular calcium concentration, [Ca²⁺]_i. We find that the Ca²⁺-induced cell differentiation of HaCaT cells is also accompanied by a significant decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential, DeltaPsi. By combining patch-clamp electrophysiological recordings and microspectrofluorimetric measurements of DeltaPsi on single cells, we show that the increase in [Ca²⁺]_i led to DeltaPsi depolarization. In addition, we report that tetraethylammonium (TEA), a blocker of plasma membrane K⁺ channels, which is known to inhibit cell proliferation, and 4,4-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2,2-disulfonic acid (DIDS), a blocker of plasma membrane Cl^– channels, also affect DeltaPsi. Both these agents stimulate HaCaT cell differentiation. These data therefore strongly suggest a direct causal relationship between depolarization of DeltaPsi and the inhibition of proliferation and induction of differentiation in HaCaT keratinocytes.     

千里光合子胚和胚乳形成及其早期发育的细胞学特征（英文）

千里光(Senecio scandens Buch.-Ham. ex D. Don)是传统中草药,抗菌功效显著。本研究从细胞学角度对千里光合子胚和胚乳的形成与发育进行观察研究。结果显示,结构和功能迥异的基细胞和顶细胞源自细胞质不均一分布的合子所致,推测合子的极性与胚囊的极性和生殖核分裂为二态精细胞有关;基细胞在合子胚胎球型期末期出现分化,早期胚胎的组织分化始于三角期,可辨别的结构差异直到鱼雷期才出现。此外,胚乳形成遵循无细胞壁核化模型。本研究对千里光细胞分化、组织分化和结构差异各发育阶段特征的观察结果,不仅可为深入分析胚胎发育过程功能基因的时空表达提供依据,也为相关近缘物种的系统植物学研究提供参考资料。